Sonic Youth sets track list for Starbucks compilation

Published
8:00 pm EDT, Thursday, May 22, 2008

BY JONATHAN COHEN

Billboard.com

NEW YORK -- Sonic Youth has finalized the track list for its compilation "Hits Are for Squares," due June 10 exclusively in Starbucks stores in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco, Seattle, Boston, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C., as well as online.

In addition to the exclusive Sonic Youth track "Slow Revolution," the limited-edition CD features Sonic Youth songs, handpicked by Radiohead, Chloe Sevigny, Dave Eggers, Eddie Vedder, Beck, Flea, David Cross and other enthusiasts. Participants have also written about their selections for the liner notes.

"I guess, for some, Sonic Youth represents something that they don't really equate with Starbucks," said Moore last year. "But I kind of like the absurdity of it. Sonic Youth has always, in a way, made itself available to the super mainstream."

"In a way, Sonic Youth has a branded name," he continued. "People know the name, but not necessarily our music, which might be a little too outsider for some. And when they do hear a little something, it doesn't tell the whole story. I thought it would be interesting to have a CD available in a store like Starbucks where the casual consumer can sort of have access to (our music) more readily."

"From my experience, nothing gets you going like putting on 'Teenage Riot' at full volume ... 0 to 60, standing still," Vedder writes of his choice. "Play it twice and you will have cleaned the house and shoveled the walk. In a car you'll find yourself doing 95 and getting pulled over before the first chorus."

Sonic Youth has a few shows lined up this summer, including a July 4 gig with the reunited Feelies at New York's Battery Park.